Course Syllabus
SPRING SUMMER 2017
ANABAPTIST SPIRITUALITY FOR TODAY’S CHURCH
SPIR 0607
MONDAY JUNE 12 TO FRIDAY JUNE 16
9:00AM-4:00PM
INSTRUCTOR: PROF. ANDREW DYCK
Telephone number: (204) 487-3300 ext.627
Address (for students mailing assignments): 500 Shaftesbury Blvd., Winnipeg, MB, R3P 2N2
Email: [email protected]
Office Hours: 8:30am-5:00pm (Central Time)
Note: Andrew Dyck will be unavailable July 21–August 2
OFF-CAMPUS LOCATION:
Southridge Community Church–Vineland, 3970 Glendale Road, Vineland, ON, L0R 2C0
To access your course material, please go to http://classes.tyndale.ca. Course emails will be
sent to your @MyTyndale.ca e-mail account. For information how to access and forward
emails to your personal account, see http://www.tyndale.ca/it/live-at-edu.
I. COURSE DESCRIPTION
The spirituality of sixteenth-century Anabaptists has not only shaped differing Mennonite
denominations, but also inspired other Christian groups in the twenty-first century. This
course will trace key expressions of this ‘radical Reformation’ spirituality, and consider how
those are expressed in contemporary Christian contexts. As well as reading about Anabaptist
spirituality, students will read writings of the first Anabaptists, be invited to pray Anabaptist
prayers, and explore the implications of Anabaptist spirituality for the students’ own contexts.
Revised March 6, 2017
1
II. LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of the course, students should be able to:
 demonstrate an awareness of the study (e.g. scope and methodology) of Christian
spirituality.
 demonstrate a critical understanding of the spirituality of the sixteenth-century
Anabaptists by drawing on primary and secondary sources.
 appreciate contributions that Anabaptist spirituality have made and can make for
churches today.
 develop proposals for introducing Anabaptist spiritual practices in ways that honour
the diversity within the one Body of Christ.
III. COURSE REQUIREMENTS
A. REQUIRED READING:
Augsburger, David. Dissident Discipleship: A Spirituality of Self-Surrender, Love of God, and
Love of Neighbor. Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2006. 229 pages.
Dyck, Cornelius J. Spiritual Life in Anabaptism: Classic Devotional Resources. Scottdale, PA:
Herald Press, 1995. NOTE: This book is available as a Tyndale e-book. 100 pages as
below.
Murray, Stuart. The Naked Anabaptist: The Bare Essentials of a Radical Faith. Scottdale, PA:
Herald Press, 2010. 172 pages.
*Roth, John D. Stories: How Mennonites Came to Be. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2006. 236
pages.
*Snyder, Arnold C. Following in the Footsteps of Christ: The Anabaptist Tradition. Traditions of
Christian Spirituality Series. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2004. 208 pages.
*The books by Roth and Snyder must be read prior to the start of classes (i.e. before June 12),
as explained in the assignments below.
Articles to be read before or during the week of classes: 89 pages
- Due Tuesday:
o Schneiders, Sandra M. “Spirituality in the Academy.” Theological Studies 50,
no. 4, (December 1, 1989): 676-697.
- Due: Thursday:
o Bender, Harold S. The Anabaptist Vision. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 1944.
o Ediger, Gerry. “A Sketch of Early Mennonite Brethren Spirituality.” Direction 34,
no. 1 (Spring 2005): 15-28.
o Dintaman, Steve. “The Spiritual Poverty of the Anabaptist Vision.” Conrad
Grebel Review 10, no. 2 (Spring 1992): 205-208.
OPTIONAL: responses to Dintaman in The Conrad Grebel Review 13, no. 1
(1995).
Revised March 6, 2017
2
-
Due Friday:
o Klassen, Erwin. “Grave Robber: Spirituality and the Art of Theft.” Direction 34,
no. 1 (Spring 2005): 64-70.
B. ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING
The following assignments have been designed to help students achieve the course objectives
described above. The book review and reader’s guide not only lay a foundation for the class
sessions, but give students a grounding in Anabaptist and Mennonite history and spirituality.
These two assignments also prepare the students for having informed discussions during the
seminar portions of the class sessions. Students will be expected to contribute to the learning
of the entire class by coming prepared to each class, and be engaging thoroughly in class
discussions. The reading log assignment not only confirms that students have read the
required course readings, but introduces the students to further primary and secondary
sources germane to early and contemporary Anabaptist spirituality. In this way, students will
further develop their skills of assessing how a sixteenth-century spirituality is variously
adapted to inspire Christian spirituality today. The final project, in four parts, gives the
students the opportunity to study Anabaptist spirituality with a specific contemporary need in
mind, and to plan carefully how churches can have integrity in the ways they draw benefit
from that spirituality today.
1. Critical Book Review.
15% Due: June 12 (9:00am)
Write a 5-page (1500 word) critical book review of Stories (by Roth). Use the guide
at the end of this syllabus to help you prepare an effective review.
2. Reader's Guide.
10% Due: June 12 (9:00am)
After reading Snyder’s book, prepare a 5-page (1500 word) reader’s guide to the
book. The guide consists of:
o the author’s thesis and main sub-theses, summarized in a few sentences (½
page; 150 words)
o the main points of each chapter’s argument (⅓ page [100 words] per
chapter; use bulleted points)
o nine discussion questions for the class, one per chapter (1 page, 300
words—not more). Construct open-ended questions that will help your
classmates interact in an evaluative way with substantive—even
controversial—points in the book.
Bring your readers guide to the first day of classes, so that you can use it during
class discussions. Submit it to the professor on the last day of classes.
3. Participation.
5% Due: June 16 (4:00pm)
On the last day of classes, provide a self-assessment of your participation in the
classes, based on a tool that the professor will provide on the first day of class.
This self-assessment will provide the professor with a more holistic and objective
way of grading each student’s participation during the week of classes. (These
classes will frequently be conducted in a seminar format, during which students
Revised March 6, 2017
3
will be called upon to contribute to the learning of the whole group. These
contributions will include discussing the reading assignments, and reflecting
personally on the material being covered in class.)
4. Annotated Bibliography and Reading Log.
10% Due: July 17
Provide a statement of exactly which pages you read in the books by Augsburger,
Murray, and Dyck, followed by a ⅔-page (200 word) annotation for each book. In
each annotation, provide a one-sentence summary of the book’s thesis, and your
informed assessment of how well the authors or editors have represented early
Anabaptist spirituality for today’s church. (In the book by Dyck, read 100 pages of
your choice—for example, sections that could be helpful in your major project.)
5. Major project in four parts.
a. Reflection
10% Due: July 17
b. Paper
35% Due: August 7
c. Proposal
10% Due: August 14
d. Appendices
5% Due: August 14
a. Write a 3-page (900 word) reflection paper in which you identify key elements of
your congregation’s spirituality. (Refer to the work of scholars such as Schneiders
[above] to make sure you are writing about spirituality, not only theology or
practices.) Briefly note (a) the Christian tradition(s) that has(have) shaped the
spirituality of this congregation, and (b) the potential gifts or pitfalls within this
congregation’s spirituality.
b. Write a 12-page (3600 word) research paper that explores one key facet of early
Anabaptist spirituality in light of one potential pitfall that you recognize in the
spirituality of your congregation. (Remember to define your parameters clearly—
including which facet of Anabaptist spirituality, and which pitfall.) Although your
contemporary context should motivate the topic and thesis of this paper, write
primarily about Anabaptist spirituality because you will focus on your own context
in the other parts of this project. Snyder’s book can provide you with ideas for
topics to research (incl. new birth, mission, worship, discipline, and many more).
Draw on resources from the required readings and from your own research. Be
sure to use both primary and secondary sources; the bibliography below will help
you begin that research. Argue a clearly stated thesis, and engage your topic
critically (i.e. observation, analysis, comparison, evaluation, synthesis).
c. In light of parts (a) and (b) of this project, write a 2-page (600 word) letter
addressed to the leaders of your own congregation. In that letter, recommend that
the leaders introduce in the congregation a practice that is drawn from the
sixteenth-century Anabaptists. Include a research-based description of the original
practice, a rationale for its inclusion in your congregation, and a few practical steps
by which the leaders could incorporate this practice within your congregation.
d. Complete the letter with two appendices.
o Appendix A (2 pages, 600 words): explain how the implementation of this
practice will be done in a way that has integrity in your congregation’s
context while also honouring the integrity the practice had among the
Anabaptists.
Revised March 6, 2017
4
o Appendix B (1 page, 300 words—not more): provide an annotated
bibliography of 3-5 articles or book chapters (or segments) that would help
your leaders recognize how the proposed practice is grounded in early
Anabaptist spirituality. Include both primary and secondary sources. For
each reading, provide a brief annotation that will help focus your leaders’
attention on what’s most important in the reading you’ve selected.
C. GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR THE SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN WORK
1. Your work should demonstrate the following characteristics:
Writing
All written assignments should conform to the Chicago Style academic format, with sources
cited accordingly. (In annotated bibliographies, readings must be listed in proper bibliographic
format.) For proper citation style, consult the Chicago-Style Quick Guide (Tyndale e-resource)
or the full edition of the Chicago Manual of Style Online, especially ch. 14. For citing scripture
texts, refer to sections 10.46 to 10.51 and 14.253 to 14.254.
Excellence in terms of format, spelling, grammar, sentence and paragraph construction, etc.
are assumed. Frequent and persistent errors will result in lower assessments. Formal title
page, footnotes or endnotes, bibliography, skilled paragraphing, etc. are essential for
academic writing.
Assignments submitted by email must be sent as ‘.docx’ Microsoft Word documents. Other
word-processing formats or PDF’s are not acceptable. The professor will notify the student by
return email of the time and date on which the emailed assignment was received (normally,
this will happen within 24 hours of the professor receiving the assignment, not including
weekends). It is the student’s responsibility to gain confirmation that the professor received
his/her assignment.
Academic Integrity
Integrity in academic work is required of all our students. Academic dishonesty is any breach
of this integrity, and includes such practices as cheating (the use of unauthorized material on
tests and examinations), submitting the same work for different classes without permission of
the professors or instructors; using false information (including false references to secondary
sources) in an assignment; improper or unacknowledged collaboration with other students,
and plagiarism. Tyndale University College & Seminary takes seriously its responsibility to
uphold academic integrity, and to penalize academic dishonesty.
Academic Policies
Students should consult the current Academic Calendar for academic polices on Academic
Honesty, Gender Inclusive Language in Written Assignments, Attendance, Late Papers and
Extensions (extensions will be considered only if requested before the day that the
assignment is due), Return of Assignments, and Grading System. The Seminary’s Academic
Calendar is posted at http://tyndale.ca/registrar.
Revised March 6, 2017
5
Students are encouraged to engage the professor outside of class hours (cf. contact details
above). Beyond such contact, email will be the professor’s standard means of communicating
with the class. Students should therefore check their MyTyndale email regularly.
D. SUMMARY OF ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING
Evaluation is based upon the completion of the following assignments:
Critical Book Review
Reader’s Guide
Participation
Annotated Bibliography and Reading Log
Reflection Paper
Research Paper
Proposal to Leaders
Appendices
Total Grade
15%
10%
5%
10%
10%
35%
10%
5%
100%
E. COURSE EVALUATION
Tyndale Seminary values quality in the courses it offers its students. End-of-course
evaluations provide valuable student feedback and are one of the ways that Tyndale
Seminary works towards maintaining and improving the quality of courses and the student’s
learning experience. Student involvement in this process is critical to enhance the general
quality of teaching and learning.
Before the end of the course, students will receive a MyTyndale email with a link to the online
course evaluation. The evaluation period is 2 weeks; after the evaluation period has ended, it
cannot be reopened.
Course Evaluation results will not be disclosed to the professor before final grades in the
course have been submitted and processed.
IV. COURSE SCHEDULE, CONTENT, AND REQUIRED READINGS
Dates of classes and
assignments
Major topics for each class
Readings due
for each class
Monday, June 12
Introductions.
o Christian spirituality.
o Anabaptist history and
contexts
Spirituality of the
Anabaptists
• Roth (pp. 9244)
• Snyder (pp.
9-28)
• Schneider
• Snyder (pp.
Tuesday, June 13
Revised March 6, 2017
Due dates for course
requirements (incl.
course evaluation)
• Critical Book Review
• Reader’s Guide
---
6
29-110)
Monday, July 17
o The human condition;
new birth
o Baptism; the body of
Christ
Spirituality of the
Anabaptists (cont.’d)
o Discipleship;
martyrdom
o Spiritual disciplines;
present-day
considerations
Anabaptist spirituality for
today
o Mennonite Brethren
o Mennonites
Anabaptist spirituality for
today (cont.’d)
o Beyond Mennonites
o Appropriating with
integrity
---
Monday, August 7
Monday, August 14
-----
-----
Wednesday, June 14
Thursday, June 15
Friday, June 16
Snyder (p.
111-188)
---
• Ediger
• Bender
• Dintaman
---
• Klassen
• Course Evaluation
• Self-Evaluation of
Participation
• Reader’s Guide
---
• Annotated Bibliography
and Reading Log
• Reflection Paper
• Research Paper
• Proposal to Leaders
• Appendices
V. SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
The following resources address Christian spirituality, sixteenth-century Anabaptism (incl.
primary and secondary sources), and Mennonite history and spirituality. (Mennonite Brethren
resources figure prominently in the latter category not because they will be the focus of each
student’s research, but because they typify the kinds of resources that students can seek
out—for more examples cf. http://www.mbhistory.org/pub.en.html).This bibliography not
exhaustive, but is designed to assist students in their research for this course’s assignments.
Christian Spirituality
Howard, Evan B. The Brazos Introduction to Christian Spirituality. Grand Rapids: Brazos
Press, 2008.
Sheldrake, Philip. "What Is Spirituality?" In Exploring Christian Spirituality: An
Ecumenical Reader, edited by Kenneth J. Collins. Grand Rapids: Baker Books,
2000.
Revised March 6, 2017
7
Sixteenth-Century Anabaptism
Braght, Thieleman J. The Bloody Theater, Or, Martyrs' Mirror. 15th ed. Scottdale, PA:
Herald Press, 1987.
http://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/logi
n.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=28137&site=ehostlive&scope=site&ebv=EB&ppid=pp_COVER.
Friesen, Abraham. Erasmus, the Anabaptists, and the Great Commission. Grand
Rapids: Eerdmans, 1998.
Klaassen, Walter. Anabaptism: Neither Catholic nor Protestant. Third ed. Kitchener:
Pandora Press, 2001.
Klaassen, Walter, ed. Anabaptism in Outline: Selected Primary Sources. Waterloo:
Herald Press, 1981.
Klaassen, Walter and William Klassen. The Writings of Pilgram Marpeck. Eugene, OR:
Wipf and Stock, 1978.
______. Marpeck: A Life of Dissent and Conformity. Scottdale: Herald Press, 2008.
http://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/logi
n.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=301390&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Liechty, Daniel, ed. Early Anabaptist Spirituality: Selected Writings. The Classics of
Western Spirituality. New York: Paulist Press, 1994.
Schmidt, Garry. “Early Anabaptist spirituality: history and response.” Direction 34, no.
1 (2005): 29-42.
http://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/logi
n.aspx?direct=true&db=rfh&AN=ATLA0001459376&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Simons, Menno. The Complete Writings of Menno Simons, c. 1496-1561. Edited by J. C.
Wenger. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 1986.
http://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/logi
n.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=28168&site=ehost-live&scope=site.
Williams, George Huntston, ed. Spiritual and Anabaptist Writers: Documents
Illustrative of the Radical Reformation. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1957.
https://archive.org/stream/spiritualandanab027460mbp#page/n9/mode/2up.
Yoder, John H., ed., trans. The Legacy of Michael Sattler. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press,
1973.
Mennonite History and Spirituality
Epp, Frank H. Mennonites in Canada, 1786-1920: The History of a Separate People.
Toronto: Macmillan of Canada, 1974.
______. Mennonites in Canada, 1920-1940: A People’s Struggle for Survival. Toronto:
Macmillan of Canada, 1982.
Epp, Marlene. Mennonite Women in Canada: A History. Winnipeg: University of
Manitoba Press, 2008.
http://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/logi
n.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=497409&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Friesen, Peter M. The Mennonite Brotherhood in Russia (1789-1910). Translated by J.
B. Toews et al. Fresno, CA: Board of Christian Literature, General Conference of
Mennonite Brethren Churches, 1980.
https://archive.org/stream/TheMennoniteBrotherhoodInRussia17891910/The
Revised March 6, 2017
8
%20Mennonite%20Brotherhood%20in%20Russia%20%2817891910%29#page/n3/mode/2up
Driver, John. Life Together in the Spirit: A Radical Spirituality for the Twenty-First
Century. Walden, NY: Plough Publishing House, 2015.
http://www.plough.com/en/topics/faith/anabaptists/life-together-in-the-spirit
Kasdorf, Hans. “Pietist Roots of Early Mennonite Brethren spirituality.” Direction 13,
no. 3 (1984): 44-55.
http://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/log
in.aspx?direct=true&db=rfh&AN=ATLA0001431929&site=ehostlive&scope=site.
Kraus, C. Norman. “An Anabaptist Spirituality for the Twenty-first Century.” Conrad
Grebel Review 13, no. 1 (Winter 1995): 23-32.
http://web.a.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2048/ehost/pdfviewer/pdf
viewer?sid=5058c7af-7889-4e3d-a2dcfddaaf07fc6b%40sessionmgr4009&vid=16&hid=4112
Kropf, Marlene and Eddy Hall. Praying with the Anabaptists: The Secret of Bearing
Fruit. Newton, KS: Faith & Life, 1994.
Martens, Elmer A. and Peter J. Klassen. Knowing and Living Your Faith: A Study of the
Confession of Faith. Winnipeg: International Community of Mennonite
Brethren and Kindred Productions, 2008.
Regehr, T.D. A People Transformed: Mennonites in Canada, 1939-1970, vol. 3.
Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2000.
http://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/logi
n.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=468295&site=ehost-live&scope=site
Snyder, C. Arnold. “Modern Mennonite reality and Anabaptist spirituality: Balthasar
Hubmaier’s catechism of 1526.” The Conrad Grebel Review 9, no. 1 (1991): 3751.
http://ezproxy.mytyndale.ca:2048/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/logi
n.aspx?direct=true&db=rfh&AN=ATLA0000835949&site=ehostlive&scope=site.
Toews, John A. A History of the Mennonite Brethren Church: Pilgrims and Pioneers. Ed
A. J. Klassen. Fresno, CA: Board of Christian Literature, General Conference of
Mennonite Brethren Churches, 1975.
https://archive.org/stream/AHistoryOfTheMennoniteBrethrenChurch/AHistory
OfTheMennoniteBrethrenChurchByJaToews#page/n1/mode/2up.
Toews, John B. (‘JB’). A Pilgrimage of Faith: The Mennonite Brethren Church in Russia
and North America 1860-1990. Winnipeg, MB, and Hillsboro, KS: Kindred,
1993.
https://archive.org/stream/PilgrimageOfFaithOCRopt#page/n1/mode/2up.
Toews, John B. "Patterns of Piety among the Early Brethren (1860-1900)." Journal of
Mennonite Studies 12 (1994): 137-155.
http://jms.uwinnipeg.ca/index.php/jms/article/view/416/416
Wiebe, Rudy. Peace Shall Destroy Many. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1962.
______. The Blue Mountains of China. Toronto: McClelland and Stewart, 1975.
______. Sweeter Than All the World. Toronto: Alfred A. Knopf Canada, 2001.
[or other Wiebe novels about Mennonites]
Revised March 6, 2017
9
Generic Guidelines for Critical Book Review
The following outline is designed to provide the student with a set of categories and
questions to consider when writing a critical book review. In a five-page critical book review
(as outlined below, for instance), the student may not be able to address all the items
below. Therefore, the student is advised to use these guidelines in his/her preparatory work
on the critical book review. Then, when writing the review, the student should address
those items that are most important. An A or A+ student will go beyond completing or
answering these individual items by weaving the paper into a coherent and compelling
whole.

Introduction (c. ½ page):
o A brief description of the book: title, author, subject and format. Here you can
include details about who the author is, his or her credentials and expertise,
how the title and subject matter are linked, etc.
o A brief summary of the purpose of the book and its general argument or
theme. Include a statement indicating for whom the book is intended.
o Your own thesis about the book. (This should include but is not necessarily
limited to a consideration of whether the book is a suitable or appropriate
piece of writing for the audience it has identified).

Summary of Content (c. 1–1½ pages):
o This can be done in the same way that is done for a simple book report (do not
spend too many words on this section, as the subsequent analysis and
evaluation of content are more important than a simple summary).

Analysis of Text (c. 2½–3 pages):
o What is the writer's style: simple/technical, persuasive/logical? Be brief.
o How well does the organizational method (comparison/contrast; cause/effect;
analogy; persuasion through example) develop the argument or theme of the
book? (Give examples to support your analysis.) Be brief.
o What evidence does the book present to support the argument? How
convincing is this evidence? (Select pieces of evidence that are weak, or strong,
and explain why they are such. As you write, be attentive to ways in which the
book has confirmed and/or challenged your biblical-theological understanding
of the topic.)
o Are there facts, perspectives and/or evidence that the author has neglected to
consider? (You will normally need to refer to other relevant material, including
but not limited to the Bible.)

Evaluation of the Text (c. ½ page):
o Briefly summarize of the weakness and strengths you have found in the book
(incl. whether the book does what it set out to do).
o Evaluate the book’s overall usefulness to the audience it is intended for.
o Comment on the book’s relevance to your life and ministry.
Revised March 6, 2017
10